"Thank you... so... much...!" panted Rouge. He looked up to see ThornSnyder's worried face. Thorn had pulled him out of the fire, leading him outside.

"It wasn't Abe!" he exclaimed. "Dark is the evil one!"

A laughter came from nowhere. "You're damn right I was!"

A cold chill shot down both of their backs.

"Abe was insane enough to try and take me down with him. Lucky for me, ump45master helped me escape... not that I really needed it!"

Rouge rolled over on his back. "You bastard! So you've been behind all the murders?!"

"Hehehe... not exactly. Groose Jr. doesn't take much convincing, he said he'd kill a few of you for a few Rupees! I was going to threaten him with his life, but hell, that made my job easier!"

"What do you mean, 'your job?'" inquired Thorn.

"Ha, I guess I could fill you in, can't I? You see," Dark started, "As children of the chosen heroes, who were to stop the evil power from before, you inherited their legacy!" Dark appeared in front of the two in a cloud of black smoke. "I needed you out of the way so I could get my hands on the sacred power, the Triforce. I didn't want any complications along the way, so I decided to kill you all early." Dark smirked. "Some of your friends just happened to get in the way."

"You bastard!" yelled Rouge.

"Is that all you can say? Hahahaha! I'd rather hear something else, if you don't mind." Dark drew a fairly large sword and gave a big grin.

"Wanna hear this?" Thorn drew his bow and shot an arrow at Dark, who disappeared in an instant. "RUN!"

Thorn helped Rouge up, pulling Rouge's arm over his shoulders. He began to run through town, dodging the ocassional arrow or slash Dark threw at him. One arrow nicked Thorn's sleeve, ripping it off his shirt. Where the sleeve once was showed a tattoo that looked very similar to ump's, except it also branded a III on the shield. The word "Defender" had not yet faded like ump's.

The two reached the edge of Skyloft and jumped, calling for their loftwings. The two separated in the air as they landed on their separate loftwings.

"We need to talk to Groose! He probably knows what to do!" yelled Rouge over the roar of wind in his ears.

Still dodging arrows, the two headed down to the surface world. They landed in Faron Woods, near the temple. Groose still sat in the same spot outside the temple.

"The evil one was Dark Arcanine! What do we d- SHIT!" An arrow flew over Thorn's shoulder, nearly hitting both his and Groose's heads.

"Quick, inside! The blade of evil's bane is inside!"

"What?!" exclaimed Rouge as they all ran inside.

Groose closed and barred the door. "The Master Sword, the only thing that can seal away this evil power! The hero of legend, Link, used it to fight off the last evil!"

"Well shit, I have absolutely no swordsman training..." admitted Thorn. "Here Rouge, you take it..."

Rouge nodded and walked up to the sword. He gripped the sword tightly and pulled up... but the sword didn't budge.

"*bleep*"

"Out of the way, let me try." Thorn grabbed the sword, and a small golden triangle glowed on his hand. He pulled the Master Sword out of the ground with no problems. He turned to Rouge. "Here, now take it."

The door burst open and Dark flew in. He shot an arrow into Thorn's knee, causing him to buckle to the ground. He chuckled, "No more adventuring for you!"

Rouge stood up and ran at Dark. The Master Sword was much heavier than his Energy Sword. He tried to jump and slash at Dark, but didn't even reach halfway.

Dark smiled and tackled him up against the wall. "Now, be good and stay right here, I'll be back for you later."

He let go of Rouge and headed up into the air. "You know, I thought you guys really made my job easy. Or at least, Rouge did." Rouge gave a weird look. Dark saw this and sneered, "You left a fork in the microwave when you heated up that lasagna, dumbass! I saw the microwave had caught fire and thought I'd just knock you guys out right there so you'd burn. Didn't realize that apartment would take so damn long to burn..."

Dark turned and looked at Groose. "Ah yes, I remember you. You helped that boy in green by shooting my imperfect form with those bombs! Ha, I think it's time for some payback!"

Dark lifted up Groose by the neck. He seemed to stare at him a moment, then whispered something in his ear. He tossed the old man like a ragdoll across the room and into a wall. Groose hit the ground and didn't move again.

An arrow suddenly shot into Dark's upper back. He cried out, then turned around to see Thorn on one knee with his bow out. Thorn shot another arrow, but Dark caught it in front of his face, snapped it in half, and tossed it aside. He slowly floated down towards Thorn, the arrow still sticking out of his back.

"Aww, even in the darkest times you try to be a hero. That's admirable, I will admit. However..." he pulled the arrow out of his back, "this was pretty annoying. I'm going to go ahead and give," he drove the arrow through Thorn's arm, pinning him to the wall, "back to you. Doesn't that just feel great? I know I liked it when you did it."

He backed up a bit. Thorn was screaming in agony as Dark let go of him, suspending him by the arm. "You look quite nice hanging there, you know. Seems to be a pretty sturdy arrow as well, you always had a knack for crafting some nice arrows."

"Now, where was I-"

Dark was stopped short by a sword being thrust through his chest. He grunted and fell to his knees.

"Aha, that was... eurgh... sneaky, Rouge. Props to you for... that... agh..." Dark had a hard time talking. His power seemed to be draining from him.

Rouge said, "Yeah, I suppose it was. Now shut the hell up." He turned the sword and took it out of Dark's body. He forced the sword across Dark's neck, beheading the evil one."It's just been revoked!"

Thorn grunted, "He... err... didn't really set you up... for that line... ergh... bro. Now, can you... get me down?"

"Yeah, yeah. Hold on..." Rouge prepped himself, jumped, and grabbed the arrow, dislodging it a bit but causing a sharp jolt of pain in Thorn.

"ARRGH! God, just let me get it..." he pulled the arrow out himself, causing him to fall and collapse on the floor.

"So... I suppose that NOW it's safe to assume it's over." said Rouge.

"Dear God, I hope so!" The two chuckled and sat for a bit, exhausted. Rouge wrapped up Thorn's wounds with pieces of torn clothing, and the two eventually headed back to Skyloft, maybe to even stop at Subloft for a quick bite.

ThornSnyder was the Defender.Dark Arcanine was the real Demise, and was picked by Rouge Elite to be voted out this round. Meaning, the traders win!

Spoiler:notifs

Highlight this box with your cursor to read the spoiler text.Defender: ThornSnyder

The group decided to go to the bazaar to search for Dark. When they got there, there were a few stalls open like there always were. There was a shady girl sitting in the corner by the pub, but otherwise the place wasn't getting many customers. The group decided to look at merchandise while they were there, why not?After logcar finished looking at some bombs on sale, he turned around to see a large guy behind him with a huge pompadour."Shit, Groose..." he murmered to himself.

"Haha! You're damn right!" He, Cawlin and Stritch, who were also behind Groose, all gave the same evil grin. Groose pushed logcar against the sales counter.There was a sudden bright flash, and Groose suddenly flew into the opposite wall, leaving a few cracks and a large impression.

The girls face lightened up quite a bit. "My name's Team Hydro Aura! Nice to meet you! This here is Lucario, my best friend. We've been through a lot together. Lucario, return!" She held out a red and white ball, and Lucario disappeared into it.

"Whoa! How does that work??" Asked Aussie.

"You know what, I really don't know..." THA replied, half laughing. "Oh, I heard you two were looking for Dark Arcanine. I can sense his aura at the shooting range, along with a fellow named ThornSnyder."

"Whoa, now how did you do THAT?!?" inquired Aussie.

"Lucario taught me. That's kinda why I helped you out, logcar, I could sense your helplessness against that bully."

logcar stuttered. "I-I-I wasn't helpless! I-"

"Shhh, I've got something to tell the headmaster of the knight's school. Where is he? I can't sense him for some reason..." THA asked.

"Uh, have you tried the school?" Aussie replied. "Seems like the most logical answer..."

"Err... nope. Without being able to sense him, I feel lost. To be honest, I'm not too familiar with this area at all, I've only been at Skyloft for a few hours."

"Then how do you know-" logcar got cut short again.

"Can you guys take me to the school? Please? It's important I see the headmaster."

"Yeah, I suppose. We want to go see Dark first, if that's okay."

THA sighed. "Fine... but please hurry."

The three headed off to the shooting range. As they approached the entrance, logcar spoke up.

"Guys, I think we're being followed..."

Sure enough, Groose was standing there with a large smirk on his face.

"You again? Well, we know how to handle you... Go, Lucario!"

Groose laughed. "Ha, you think I'd be stupid enough to take on that thing again?"He pulled his own red and white ball out of his pocket. "Go, Charmeleon! Attack!"

"Lucario, Aura Sphere, now!"

Charmeleon launched himself at Lucario, and Lucario launched a large energy ball at the fire lizard. Charmeleon took a full on hit, knocking him back behind Groose.

"Come on mother *bleep*er! Destroy that thing!"

Charmeleon stood up, a deep look of hatred on it's face.It began to glow.Charmeleon grew larger and grew wings. It let out a roar and a large jet of flame into the air.

"The *bleep* is going on?!" Shouted Groose before he ran off.

"Damn it! Charmeleon evolved into Charizard! Lucario, try to take it out with Aura Sphere again!" Shouted THA.

Lucario launched his attack at Charizard again, and the dragin thrust forward it's wings. The ball of energy exploded against the wings, and Charizard didn't even flinch.Charizard grinned.He flew up into the air and let out a large stream of fire onto THA and Lucario.

"God, no!" Screamed Aussie and logcar at the same time.

THA and Lucario were nowhere to be seen after that.logcar burst into tears."WHY?!?"

Charizard turned it's attention to the two bystanders and grinned again. It started to dive.

"... we're gonna die." Aussie muttered several times to himself.

Suddenly Charizard slowed, and slammed into the ground next to Aussie and logcar, unmoving with two arrows sticking out of it's thin neck.

"Nice shot!" Someone exclaimed, then a clapping noise.

____________________

"Haha, yes!" Dark Arcanine and ThornSnyder celebrated their takedown with a high five.

"Dude, you've really improved!" Dark said to Thorn.

"Uhh, guys... someone just died here..." mentioned Aussie.

"What? Who? And... dude, why are you wearing a dress?" asked Thorn, who was slightly confused.

"... that doesn't matter right now, what matters is that... that thing killed Team Hydro Aura!"

"Team Pyro who?"

Aussie facepalmed. He took the time to explain who THA was to Dark and Thorn.

"... so we should bring this up to headmaster Gaepora. Not only did Groose's... beast murder someone, but we've also got to tell him about how THA had a message for him!"

"Hey, we've also gotta prepare for the race tomorrow..." said logcar.

"Ah, shit... you're right. This is more important th-"

"Wait. How about Dark and I warn the headmaster, and you two can go prepare." Thorn suggested. He and Dark had graduated from the academy a few months earlier. "We'll handle it."

"I suppose..." mumbled logcar.

The group parted ways. As logcar and Aussie went to check on their Loftwings, logcar noticed something weird. He couldn't sense his Loftwing. Instead there was a colder presence... as if it no longer existed.

It was starting to get late. logcar began to fear the worst. He began shaking, almost crying.

"Hey man, are you ok?" Aussie looked concerned.

"Err... fine. Let's just get our Loftw-"

logcar stopped, and dropped to his knees, a horrified expression on his face.

In front of the two was a small sign with a crudely written message on it:

hey lozer, i killd yer bird.-Groosebad guyzbandits

"God, he really isn't very smart, is he? Sorry about your loss, logcar..."

logcar cried. A lot.

Meanwhile, Thorn and Dark had just finished talking to headmaster Gaepora. He took in the information slowly, and was quite shocked a student would act that way.

"I'll talk to him about this right away." He told them, sounding pretty concerned. "You two should warn the other knights, and keep a watch out for suspiscious activity."

"Will do." confirmed Dark. As they opened the door to leave, a stunned student sat on the other side. "Err... hello..."

"Ah, sfree36, up to your eavesdropping antics again? You and da koopa troopa have been doing that a lot lately." Gaepora smiled, "You know, you can get in a lot of trouble that way young man. What all did you hear?"

Trembling, sfree answered, "ummm... all of it... but I actually came to ask you if I can participate in the race tomorrow, sir... I've been practicing a lot with my Loftwing, I think we're ready this time!"

"sfree, I really don't want to have four of our knights risk their lives for another mishap like last year's... Are you sure you can ride your Loftwing?" sfree nodded eagerly. "Well then, I don't see why not!"

sfree jumped with excitement.

"Dark, Thorn; can you two please take this young man back to his room?"

"Yeah, sure" they both muttered.

"So, are you excited for tomorrow, bud?" Dark asked. Before sfree could respond, a small, black sphere with white eyes walked into the hall, making weird sounds.

*Bep bep beh boo beh bep boo bep*

Suddenly, a fuse on it's head spontaneously lit, and it it blew a large hole in the side of the academy, knocking the group off their feet.

A large figure rushed in, grabbed sfree, and took off.

"You'll never see this kid alive again! Bahahahaha" screamed Groose as he chucked sfree off the edge.

"NO!" screamed Dark and Thorn.

Thorn leaped off the edge and called his Loftwing, though he was aware of not being able to fly well at night.

He darted straight down, and looked for any sign of sfree. He looked and looked, but saw nothing.

"Groose, you *bleep*ing prick..."

____________________

"I'm gonna kill that bastard!" logcar was wallowing over the loss of his Loftwing. Everyone decided to get together and have a bit to drink at Aussie's. Except, logcar had a little more than a bit.

"Hey, chill bro. Let us all have a stab at him. The prick threw poor sfree off a cliff, and his damned dragon destroyed that poor girl." Thorn said.

"How is he still walking, anyway? You'd figure he'd be thrown off Skyloft himself by now..." Murmered Aussie.

There was a knock at the door; Dark got up and answered. It was Pwnige and da koopa troopa.

"Whatever, time to pwn some noobs!" Aussie and Pwnige immediately began playing.

"Pfft, Microsoft fanboys..." murmered koopa troopa.

"Whoa, forgot you were here dude. Sorry about what happened to your friend today... Dark and I tried to save him. Tell you what, we'll take you out to the range tomorrow, teach you a little on how to properly use a bow!" said Thorn, trying to cheer koopa up.

koopa didn't look too excited. "Erm... sure."

"Maybe we can take logcar as well, after all he just-" Dark looked over at logcar. "Ha, he must have drank himself to sleep." logcar was passed out over the table, half out of his seat. "I suppose I'll take him to the guest room, doesn't look like he's getting up anytime soon. I'll be right back."

"Eat RPG, bitches!" Screamed Aussie.

Suddenly, a brick busted through the window. On it, a note said:

Im otsyde

Thorn half laughed. "Really?! How hard is it to spell 'outside'? Christ..." He looked up and saw koopa, Aussie, and Pwnige had already gone outside. He followed, and he saw Groose sitting on his Loftwing. "Ha, catch me now, idiots!" He took off.

Thorn got a little pissed. "Damn, I left my bow at home! If I had... ohoho, Groose would sooo be dead." He ran and called his loftwing.

All noise seemed to drown out for a second, except for a low, fluctuating hum. Thorn stopped and looked around, and saw the others pointing at the sky.

Abe launched missiles at Groose, and they went everywhere, hitting buildings and the ground.

"Christ, he's going to destroy Skyloft!" yelled Pwnige.

Groose started flying in awkward patterns, it seemed his Loftwing had been hit by shrapnel. Groose tossed a bomb back at Abe, which missed and hit a building near the gang. The side of the bazaar blew, with large chunks of wall flying everywhere.

"EVERYONE INSIDE NOW!!" yelled Thorn.

As everyone sprinted inside, one member of the gang was still sitting outside, a dark look on his face. He pulled out a blue turtle shell with wings, cocked his arm back, and gave a good throw at Groose, knocking him off his bird.

In the blink of an eye, a large chunk of the bazaar replaced where young koopa stood.

"NO!" screamed Pwnige.

"What is going on here!?" asked Dark.

Thorn turned around. "Groose... Groose is what's happening."

____________________

"Is everyone alright?" asked Dark, worriedly.

"Let's do a head count" suggested Thorn.

"Well... we'll be playing XBox. The DLC I just bought should be done downloading. " said Pwnige. He and Aussie went right over to the gaming console, setting up the Kinect.

"... Whatever. So, we've got Dark, Aussie, Pwnige, me... logcar?"

"Out like a light" said Dark, half laughing.

"Ha, figures. He had quite a bit to drink. C'mon Dark, let's move this boulder away from the doorway..."

KA-DOOSHThe boulder in the way shattered.

"Wha... did you do that?!?" asked Thorn, completely shocked.

"No..."

They turned to see a guy with a fairly large, outlandish warhammer. "Thought you guys might want some help!"

"Rouge Elite! Dude that scared the shit out of us! Haha! Nice to see you man!"

"Nice to see you guys too, the search for the hero of legend took waaay longer than expected. We thought he'd be somewhere in the temple near where the goddess statue hit the surface world several years back, but he was nowhere to be seen." explained Rouge.

"Still can't believe that thing used to be up here... hard to believe I was born just weeks after all that went down!Anyway, did you guys see Zelda either?"

"No. We did find a bracelet that looked like the ones Zelda wore, but it seemed to have aged a bit. Oh, and we did find a kid down there... poor kid seemed to have fallen from Skyloft. We didn't see him come down or we would've saved him."

Thorn's face went pale. "sfree..."

"Is that who that was? Damn, he was so little when we headed out..."

"Yeah, Groose Jr. threw the kid off Skyloft. He's been wrecking havoc up here... as you can see."

"Groose's kid did this? Groose seems like such a good character. He even took it upon himself to protect that temple down on the surface. Nothing even down there... When Emberguard, another member of our group, tried to enter the back chamber, he about threw her across the room. Said that room was only to be accessed by a true hero and children of Hylia. He takes it pretty seriously."

"Wow. You know, I'd really like to see the surface sometime."

"Ha, maybe I'll take you all down there next time, seeing as you've seemed to graduate from the Academy. Knight's garments look good on you guys!Anyway, our group is going to be hanging out at Subloft after we cleanup Skyloft, why don't you come with us? You can explain everything on the way!"

"Sounds good!"

Thorn and Dark headed off with Thorn, leaving logcar in bed and Aussie and Pwnige playing XBox. The two seemed to be dancing in front of the television.

-----

Hours passed, and Dark and Thorn met up with Rouge and his group... which only had two more people, Emberguard and an elderly man. Emberguard held what looked like a smaller version of Groose's monster in her lap.The old guy sat and polished his small submachine gun carefully. He seemed to have some attachment to it.

The group shared stories over a few subs. The creature Ember was holding was what she called a Charmander, and she said she had found it while the group explored a large volcano called Death Mountain. There were apparently others on the surface, and Ember had dubbed them as "Pocket Monsters."

The older guy was apparently around when Skyloft was almost destroyed, and the Goddess Statue fell onto the surface. He also explained that he once knew the hero of legend and young Zelda.

When they were done, the group decided to head to the surface world after the race the next day/afternoon (no one had any idea what time it was, but it was fairly late). They headed back to Aussie's place for some rest/to fill them in on the plan.

Once there, they noticed Aussie outside, sitting against the front door, a solemn expression on his face. Curious, Thorn asked, "What's up?"

Aussie looked up slowly, then dropped his head back down. "Pwnige is... dead."

The three awake gave Pwnige a small and short burial. Aussie placed the Kinect and XBox inside the burial. "He would've wanted it..." he explained. "Who knows, maybe he'll carry it with him beyond the grave..."

Everyone regrouped at the bazaar. None of the merchants seemed to have any idea that Skyloft was nearly blown apart only hours before.

After a bit of discussion and introducing Aussie to Rouge's group, everyone went their own ways to prepare for the ceremony that took place later in the day. Aussie didn't really want to go home, but figured he needed some rest. Not to mention logcar was probably still passed out in the guest bed.

After a bit of cleaning up, Aussie set an alarm and hopped in bed. Before he fell asleep, he heard logcar murmuring in his sleep:

"Who's there...?"

"Erm... it's me, Aussie Legend..."

"Am... dreaming...?"

"Yeah, probably."

And with that, Aussie fell asleep.

-----

"Aussie! Aussie! Come on, dude! The race starts in 45 minutes!"

Aussie jolted awake. "Shiiiiit, overslept... I'm on my way out!"

"My bird... dead... Groose..." murmured logcar.

Aussie looked at him for a second. "Damn, you must not be sleeping well... Hey guys! Let's bring logcar with us before Groose kills him in his sleep." he shouted to the others. The old guy came in and threw logcar over his shoulder.

"Let's go," he said.

The group headed out to the area that the competition was supposed to start, but no one was there. What was there were giant holes in the ground.

"I take it the competition won't take place today," said Ember.

"Nah, they'll force everyone to walk across the crumbling dirt." The group turned around to see Abe walking toward them. "Of course it's not today, sheesh."

"Yeah, because of you! God dammit, you know all that debris could've- well, did kill someone." Thorn said, angrily.

"I was just trying to give Groose what he deserved. I saw what he did to that girl and felt he deserved it."

"But poor Koopa didn't! You killed a young boy!"

"Well, technically the 'debris' must've killed him, 'cause I was aiming at Groose the entire time.I don't think I got him though, sadly. I did see a small object fly at his loftwing and explode though. Pretty sure he survived, but his bird looked pretty hurt."

"Anyway, guys," Dark broke in, "We should talk to the headmaster. Need to see what day the ceremony's been moved to."

So the group made their way to the headmaster's office. He explained that the ceremony would be delayed untile the area was patched up. Let down, the group headed back to the bazaar.

"So, what now?" asked Dark.

Rouge answered, "Well... we can take you guys to the surface if you guys want!"

"Yeah!""Cool!"

"Alright, but first I want to check out that thunderhead. I heard the hero used to visit there, so naturally it draws me in."

"Yeah, we can do that." said Thorn.

"Char!" exclaimed Ember's Charmander.

"You'll be fine!" Ember assured the lizard. "He doesn't like high winds very much, messes with the fire on its tail, which is connected to its life force." she explained to the group.

"Wow, that thing is actually pretty cool!" Dark told Ember.

Everyone headed out to climb onto a loftwing, and Abe went to get his heli. Rouge and Ember rode the same loftwing, as well as the old man and logcar.

The old guy pulled out some headphones, which seemed to instantly play music as they entered his ears. The music seemed fairly loud too, since these words were played loud and clear:

Oh my GodOh my God!If only he knew...If only he knew...!If only he knew about the worldWithout the bullshit and the lies...We could've saved him!They could've saved me!

"Damn, geezer's got a taste for heavy music" Aussie commented.

They all took off towards the thunder head. There seemed to be a slight opening around the front, so Rouge, Ember, and geezer got closer to examine it. They came back looking disappointed. "The entrance isn't large enough for any of us to fit through. Strange though, since there's a large section of cloud swirling around it, different from the ones around it..." explained Rouge.

Then, a twister seemed to shoot up out of nowhere. Everyone evaded it using maneuvers learned at the academy.

"Wow, school actually did teach us something!" said Dark, laughing.

Abe finally caught up with his heli while everyone recovered, the hum of the blades making it hard to hear anything. The wind also picked up a lot more. Charmander's tail flame was very small, and Ember tried to protect it.Charmander went unconscious, sliding out from between Ember and Rouge and off the loftwing.

"NO!" shouted Ember. She dove off of Rouge's loftwing in an attempt to catch him. Both Rouge and Thorn directed their loftwings down to follow her, but both drew back as they flew too close together.

The whole group watched as Ember grabbed Charmander and disappeared through the layer of clouds over the surface.

Blaring in the geezer's ear while everyone stared at the spot the two bodies fell through:

"Who's there?" Demanded logcar. He looked around. It was very cloudy, not a thing in sight."... where am I?"logcar thought hard for a moment. Last thing he remembered was drowning his sorrows in alcohol."Am I dreaming?!" He asked.

Somewhat... I have an important task for you...

"Whadda you mean somewhat? And a task? I'm confused..."

You need to warn the people of Skyloft... You are all in grave danger. My last prophet was killed by the one named Groose...

Please! This is important... I belong to another world... a world inhabited by creatures the prophet and a few others carry. It seems that our worlds are connected... and if your world disappears, so does ours... along with many others...

"What?! This is crazy! I definitely had waaay too much to drink..."

Listen! If you do not believe me now, I have sent you a gift... In your dorm. It will be under your bed, and will help you win that race...

"But... my bird is dead. Groose killed it."

I know... It has been reincarnated in another realm, also linked to your world...

"Damn... but, I've gotta ask... why me?"

The others do not have the potential I seek... and you were the first to fall asleep...

"Right..."

You still doubt me... I see. I suppose I can only encourage you from here. I believe it is time for you to return to your world...

"Wait! Who are you?"

The people of my world call me... Arceus...

-----

logcar jolted awake as the group landed on mainland Skyloft. He instantly hopped off of the old guy, not paying attention to the playful jests of others. He had something he wanted to do, he needed to search under his bed for that gift the being promised him.

He reached his dorm and dropped to the floor to look under his bed. Nothing new was under there. Disappointed, logcar sat himself on the bed. Footsteps were heard down the hallway as a bright light shone from underneath the bed. logcar slowly looked under the bed again to see a red and white orb, similar to the one Team Hydro Aura had used, lying under his bed. As he grabbed it, Thorn, Dark, and Aussie burst into the room.

"What are you doing dude?" asked Aussie.

logcar examined the orb. "I need to talk to the headmaster."

The four made their way to the Gaepora's office, where logcar explained the link between the worlds.

"I see..." said the headmaster. "Well, for the time being we're going to have to keep the secret between us. I don't want the people of Skyloft panicking over something that may have been just a dream. I know that it's hard to deny it wasn't," he added, looking at logcar, "but I've seen weirder coincidences before.Now, I'm sure you guys have seen that the area used for the ceremony has been cleaned up. We're holding the ceremony in a few hours! Why don't you guys rest up..."

So the group did, it seemed necessary seeing as most of the gang hadn't slept much.

logcar decided to see what was in the small orb. He noticed a small inscription on the back:

Model: PokéballProduced by Silph Co.Species caught:Pidgeot

What's a Pidgeot? he wondered. He poked the small circle protruding from the front and a bright light flashed. After the light faded, a large bird with what seemed like long flowing hair appeared in front of him.logcar's jaw dropped.The Pidgeot lowered itself down, and made a gesture towrds its back. logcar slowly hopped on. As soon as he settled, Pidgeot instantly took off, flying faster than logcar has ever seen.

He continued to fly with his new friend until the start of the flight ceremony. logcar knew he was going to win.

At the start of the race, there were only a few participants: logcar, Aussie, Cawlin, Stritch, and Groose. A date with the lovely Kukiel was the prize for winning the race. That didn't really matter to any of the participants, save Aussie, as each had other reasons to win.

"GO!" shouted Gaepora.

Four of the contestants ran and called their loftwings, chasing the yellow loftwing for the ceremonial statuette. logcar slowly pulled out the Pokéball and called for Pidgeot. He climbed on at his own pace, and Pidgeot took off.

The pair weren't in the air two minutes and they had flashed past the competition, grabbing the statuette with ease. Aussie nearly fell off of his loftwing from the wind generated by the speed.

logcar and his Pidgeot returned to the start area. Everyone had an expression of awe. Thorn slowly started clapping, which erupted into applause from everyone.

"Remarkable!" shouted the headmaster.

logcar grinned. "I knew I would beat him!" He turned around to the other racers. "I beat that red-headed motherfu-"

BANG!

There was a gunshot. logcar fell to the ground, clenching his stomach.Everyone looked at where the gunshot had come from. Groose was holding a small revolver, and still had it pointed at logcar.

TATATAT

The weapon disappeared from Groose's hand, and a few of his fingers looked broken.

The old guy spoke, his submachine gun in his hands. "Get the hell out of here."

Groose jumped and ran, Cawlin and Stritch behind him.

"Somebody, get a doctor!" yelled Thorn.Rouge ran up to the medical wing of the academy to fetch the nurse.

The crowd watched quietly as logcar slowly bled out.

"No... this can't be happening..." whispered a teary eyed Aussie.

"Aussie... make sure... you... kill..." logcar went limp, and Aussie began to cry loudly.

"Groose... you'll pay for this, you son of a bitch."

____________________

The remaining members of the group watched quietly as their friend was carried off.

"How is Groose still standing...?" asked Aussie, quietly. "Seriously... so many deaths because of him..."

"I dunno..." murmered Dark.

The old man broke the tension. "Surface world, now. It'll get your mind off of Groose, trust me."

"Boy, you're so full of joy, aren'tcha?" Abe said.

Geezer turned and glared at Abe for a sec. "You still have no idea how life works, do you? Fate is cruel, I'll just leave it at that." He walked over to his loftwing. "Rouge, lead them down. I'll be waiting below." He took off.

Abe looked at where the old guy had left for a sec. "Well... see you guys down there. I'm off to my HAVOC." He walked off.

The group was a bit stunned. "... that was a bit harsh of him to say to the kid. What's his problem, anyway?" Thorn asked Rouge.

"Dunno. He doesn't like to talk about his past. Hell, I've traveled with him for over a year and I still don't know his name."

"Hm. Seems like a good guy, but he can be a douche."

"Yeah... anyway, we should get going. Geezer can get pretty impatient." The group all climbed on their separate loftwings, took off, and followed Rouge through the clouds.

As the group broke through the clouds, their jaws dropped as they took in the green landscape.

"This area is called Faron Woods!" shouted Rouge over the roar of wind. "This place is as green as it gets down here! Beautiful!"

The group landed in a small clearing. Dark asked, "That statue over there... is that the Goddess Statue? The one that fell from Skyloft?"

"Why, yes it is, actually! The large building beside it is also the temple the Groose Sr. looks after!" answered Rouge, enthusiasticly.

They walked over to the old guy. He was sitting in a camplike area, staring at a group of large mushrooms.

"Hey," Rouge started, "where should we take these guys fi-"

Dark cut him off. "Hold on, Rouge. I'm curious about the old guy. Please, at least tell us your name..."

Geezer took a deep breath. "My name... is ump45master. I know you guys have been wanting to know about me since I was brought back to Skyloft... especially you, Rouge, for the longest time... tell you what. I'll tell you my whole backround story..."Each of the group sat down in the closest seat and listened to ump45.The old guy sighed. "You know, I knew a few of your fathers. Fun men, I'd say. I knew yours," he pointed at Dark, "yours, and yours." He continued around the circle, pointing at Rouge and Thorn. "I heard talk of koopa's son as well. Good guy, always had a weird obsession with turtles though..." ump chuckled to himself. He didn't seem to be telling his story to the group anymore, but more like taking a personal trip down memory lane. A trip that hadn't been taken in a long, long time. "You know, it really hurt to see young Pwnige collapsed like that. I knew almost instantly who he was, too..." He began tearing up a bit. "Then log's son... that was a horrible way to go. That son of Groose's is really lucky he wasn't gutted right then and there." A tear rolled down his cheek. "You're fathers... they were my friends..."

The group sat in silence for a long moment. The air was very heavy.

"... I just wish I could've protected them all. There was one amongst us that... wasn't one of us, as I came to find out eventually. I had my suspiscions, but I kept them to myself."

ump took off his shirt, revealing a tattoo on his chest. It was of a sword and shield, the word 'Defender' written underneath it. "I ate some mushrooms, just like those ones over there..." He pointed at the mushrooms he was staring at earlier. "They put me in a spasm, and eventually the toxins shut down all body movement. Everyone thought I was dead... oh, how badly I wanted to show them I wasn't... they tried to revive me, and since I didn't move they thought I had died..." There were streams coming down the old guy's face.

"When I had full control again, I returned to Skyloft, only to find out everyone had died to the hands of an evil power... the same evil power log's son seemed to be describing to the headmaster. We need to find this power, before it destroys all worlds. However, I won't push this task onto you. I've made it my personal goal to do so."

He sat and looked at the group for a long time. A smile slowly grew upon his face, "So, you were saying, Rouge?"

It was a moment before Rouge spoke. "Sh-should we take them on a t-tour of the Skyview T-Temple?"

"Ah, the temple, yes. Let's go."

The group made their way across Faron Woods and into the temple. "Ah, this place is so quiet. I love it!" said Aussie.

"Yes, yes it is..." said ump, smiling.

The group headed deeper into the temple.

"What are those things on the wall? They look like closed eyes..." asked Thorn.

"Well... that's because they are!" answered Rouge. "Apparently they were some sort of security devices, but you could easily confuse them by moving a sharp point in a circular motion. Cool thing to watch, actually."

As they walked into the next room, ump held his arm out across the group, signaling for them to stop.

"Hey, what's the bi-"

"Shhh!" Abe's sentence was cut off. A very faint... pattering noise could be heard.

"Skulltulas..." ump whispered. He took out his submachine gun, looking at any possible entrance to the room. Dark and Thorn both drew their bows, doing the same. Rouge took out what looked like a small handle. A small hand jerk turned it into an alien weapon that looked very sharp, and was very bright in color.

"I never go anywhere without my energy sword!" he said.

Abe grabbed an AS50 sniper rifle and climbed into the highest spot he could find.

... and Aussie cowered into a corner, unarmed.

TATATATATATATATATATAT

ump was the first to fire. Skulltulas seemed to pour in from everywhere: doors to other rooms, holes in the ceiling, and even gaps in the floor.

"OH MY GOD I *bleep*ING HATE SPIDERS" Aussie screamed.

Dark and Thorn released and drew arrows quickly, with their backs against one another.

"KOOOM"

Abe fired one shot after another, causing the large spiders to explode in one shot. A spider leaped at Abe, and it was quickly taken out by two arrows to its underside. Dark and Thorn looked at each other for a brief moment, smiling.

Rouge sprinted through the spiders, virtually untouched, slashing through each of them with his sword.

ump disabled a lot of the skulltulas, with his gun doing enough damage to cripple each spider.

Within almost no time, the swarm had slowed and eventually stopped.

Rouge went to take out the last one, which was frantically scurrying towards the group with its two working legs, but he was beat to it by a shot to its head from Abe.

Rouge looked around the room. "Hey, where'd Aussie go?"

The rest of the group looked around. Aussie had disappeared.

"Ha, he probably ran from all the spiders!" exclaimed Abe. "What a pansy!"

Laughing, the group backtracked into the next room. The laughter was short lived, however, as they found Aussie Legend. He was wrapped up in webbing, with a larger-than-average skulltula sinking its teeth into his body.

The five remaining men walked out of the temple quietly, making their way towards what ump and Rouge called "The Goddess Temple." Faron Woods had a few nasty creatures here and there, but the group easily moved through them.

Sitting outside the temple was an old man with a gray pompadour. His eyes were shut and his arms were crossed.

"Groose...!" Thorn half whispered. "Wow, the two really look alike!"

Groose stood up, opening his eyes. "What business do you have here?"

Rouge answered, "We came here to visit the temple, we want to show these guys what the inside looks like."

"No chance. There has been a dark power lurking the world lately, I'm not letting anyone in."

"What? That's gay..." complained Abe.

"Hmph. I was told that one hiding amongst a group of five would be desparate to get in here. Seeing as you're the only group with five people around here, I suggest you leave."

"What if-" Abe started.

"Forget it punks, I know you're the only ones down here. I see everything that enters these woods, and everything that leaves. Now scram."

"Gaaay" whined Abe.

"What now?" asked Dark.

ump pointed over to a large volcano, far off in the distance. "How about Death Mountain? However, we can't fly there with our loftwings, it's too risky to fly them in the heat and high winds the volcano creates..."

"How about my HAVOC?" suggested Abe. "We can all probably cram in there."

"... I've been meaning to ask you, how do you afford all these things?" asked Thorn, almost demanding an answer.

"My dad's rich. Duh. Come on, let's go!"

So, they all crowded into the attack helicopter and took off.

From the pilot seat, Abe radio'd, "So guys, you know one of us is... well, evil? It got me thinking... what if I just... did this." Abe reached over and pusheda small, brown button. "Haha... hahahaha... HAHAHAHAHA!"

The inside of the chopper flashed red. A voice could be heard, announcing:

MI-28 HAVOC SELF-DESTRUCTING IN:10

"Holy Christ it must be Abe!" shouted ump.

9

"Should've known after you guys told us what he did to Skyloft!" yelled Rouge.

8

"HAHAHA! CHOCOLATE BUTTONS!"

7

"What do we do?!" yelled Dark.

6

5

"Quick! Grab ahold of each other!" Everyone followed ump's command.

4

"Take this parachute, and hold on tight!"

3

ump pulled aside the main door of the heli.

2

"You all better survive this fall!"With that, ump shoved the other three out.

1

The HAVOC exploded, shrapnel flying everywhere.

"UMP!" screamed Rouge.

Dark pulled the string on the backpack, and the small parachute flew out. It was enough to slow their fall, but it didn't slow them enough. The trio were still falling towards the ground.

"Whistle for your birds!" shouted Thorn. So the three did. Rouge's came first, then Thorn's, then Dark's.

As they reached the ground, what happened had finally hit them.

Dark spoke up. "So... it was Abe the whole time... ypu know, there was always something weird about him..."

Thorn nodded in agreement.

Rouge sat still for a minute. "I still can't believe that old bastard's gone..."

"Nah, not too much into shooting arrows, unlike you two." Rouge smiled. "Super Nintendo at my old place? Haven't played in ages..."

The other two agreed, and they made their way back to the floating island.

____________________

"Dammit, I always get stuck on 5-2!" Rouge exclaimed. He, Dark, and Thorn were all hanging out in his apartment.

"Haha, dude you suck at this game!" laughed Dark.

"Thorn, you take the controller. I'm done for a minute. Mario Bros. pisses me off every time I play it."

"Alright man, calm down, it's just a game!" chuckled Thorn.

"I know, I know. I can just never pass that level, it's aggravating!"

Rouge went in the other room and turned on the tv.

"Hey Rouge, not to sound like a mooch or anything, but can do you have any food?" asked Thorn.

Rouge thought a moment. "Yeah! I've got some leftovers in the fridge from the past few days, wanna help me get rid of some? Haha"

"Uhh, whatcha got?"

"Hold on." Rouge walked in the kitchen and opened the fridge. "Let's see... some leftover pizza and some lasagna."

"Dude, I miss your lasagna! Heat that shizz up!"

Laughing, Rouge pulled out the lasagna, scooped it into a bowl, and tossed it into the microwave.

He walked into the other room to wait for the timer go off, and suddenly he was struck in the back of the head, falling to the floor.

He heard a voice, "Dude what're you do-"

clunk

He heard another body hit the floor, and his consciousness faded away.

-----

Rouge woke up in a daze, unaware that smoke filled the room. He sat up and felt the back of his head, the whole thing throbbing. He then noticed that he was sweating profusely and that the air was very polluted, making it hard to breathe.

"The hell is going... shit! FIRE!" He started crawling toward the door. His trip was cut short by his ceiling fan falling onto his legs, causing him to cry out in pain.

A hand suddenly shot through the smoke, appearing in front of his face. "Give me your hand!" said a voice. Rouge grabbed it, and he was slowly pulled out of the danger.

____________________

"Thank you... so... much...!" panted Rouge. He looked up to see ThornSnyder's worried face. Thorn had pulled him out of the fire, leading him outside.

"It wasn't Abe!" he exclaimed. "Dark is the evil one!"

A laughter came from nowhere. "You're damn right I was!"

A cold chill shot down both of their backs.

"Abe was insane enough to try and take me down with him. Lucky for me, ump45master helped me escape... not that I really needed it!"

Rouge rolled over on his back. "You bastard! So you've been behind all the murders?!"

"Hehehe... not exactly. Groose Jr. doesn't take much convincing, he said he'd kill a few of you for a few Rupees! I was going to threaten him with his life, but hell, that made my job easier!"

"What do you mean, 'your job?'" inquired Thorn.

"Ha, I guess I could fill you in, can't I? You see," Dark started, "As children of the chosen heroes, who were to stop the evil power from before, you inherited their legacy!" Dark appeared in front of the two in a cloud of black smoke. "I needed you out of the way so I could get my hands on the sacred power, the Triforce. I didn't want any complications along the way, so I decided to kill you all early." Dark smirked. "Some of your friends just happened to get in the way."

"You bastard!" yelled Rouge.

"Is that all you can say? Hahahaha! I'd rather hear something else, if you don't mind." Dark drew a fairly large sword and gave a big grin.

"Wanna hear this?" Thorn drew his bow and shot an arrow at Dark, who disappeared in an instant. "RUN!"

Thorn helped Rouge up, pulling Rouge's arm over his shoulders. He began to run through town, dodging the ocassional arrow or slash Dark threw at him. One arrow nicked Thorn's sleeve, ripping it off his shirt. Where the sleeve once was showed a tattoo that looked very similar to ump's, except it also branded a III on the shield. The word "Defender" had not yet faded like ump's.

The two reached the edge of Skyloft and jumped, calling for their loftwings. The two separated in the air as they landed on their separate loftwings.

"We need to talk to Groose! He probably knows what to do!" yelled Rouge over the roar of wind in his ears.

Still dodging arrows, the two headed down to the surface world. They landed in Faron Woods, near the temple. Groose still sat in the same spot outside the temple.

"The evil one was Dark Arcanine! What do we d- SHIT!" An arrow flew over Thorn's shoulder, nearly hitting both his and Groose's heads.

"Quick, inside! The blade of evil's bane is inside!"

"What?!" exclaimed Rouge as they all ran inside.

Groose closed and barred the door. "The Master Sword, the only thing that can seal away this evil power! The hero of legend, Link, used it to fight off the last evil!"

"Well shit, I have absolutely no swordsman training..." admitted Thorn. "Here Rouge, you take it..."

Rouge nodded and walked up to the sword. He gripped the sword tightly and pulled up... but the sword didn't budge.

"*bleep*"

"Out of the way, let me try." Thorn grabbed the sword, and a small golden triangle glowed on his hand. He pulled the Master Sword out of the ground with no problems. He turned to Rouge. "Here, now take it."

The door burst open and Dark flew in. He shot an arrow into Thorn's knee, causing him to buckle to the ground. He chuckled, "No more adventuring for you!"

Rouge stood up and ran at Dark. The Master Sword was much heavier than his Energy Sword. He tried to jump and slash at Dark, but didn't even reach halfway.

Dark smiled and tackled him up against the wall. "Now, be good and stay right here, I'll be back for you later."

He let go of Rouge and headed up into the air. "You know, I thought you guys really made my job easy. Or at least, Rouge did." Rouge gave a weird look. Dark saw this and sneered, "You left a fork in the microwave when you heated up that lasagna, dumbass! I saw the microwave had caught fire and thought I'd just knock you guys out right there so you'd burn. Didn't realize that apartment would take so damn long to burn..."

Dark turned and looked at Groose. "Ah yes, I remember you. You helped that boy in green by shooting my imperfect form with those bombs! Ha, I think it's time for some payback!"

Dark lifted up Groose by the neck. He seemed to stare at him a moment, then whispered something in his ear. He tossed the old man like a ragdoll across the room and into a wall. Groose hit the ground and didn't move again.

An arrow suddenly shot into Dark's upper back. He cried out, then turned around to see Thorn on one knee with his bow out. Thorn shot another arrow, but Dark caught it in front of his face, snapped it in half, and tossed it aside. He slowly floated down towards Thorn, the arrow still sticking out of his back.

"Aww, even in the darkest times you try to be a hero. That's admirable, I will admit. However..." he pulled the arrow out of his back, "this was pretty annoying. I'm going to go ahead and give," he drove the arrow through Thorn's arm, pinning him to the wall, "back to you. Doesn't that just feel great? I know I liked it when you did it."

He backed up a bit. Thorn was screaming in agony as Dark let go of him, suspending him by the arm. "You look quite nice hanging there, you know. Seems to be a pretty sturdy arrow as well, you always had a knack for crafting some nice arrows."

"Now, where was I-"

Dark was stopped short by a sword being thrust through his chest. He grunted and fell to his knees.

"Aha, that was... eurgh... sneaky, Rouge. Props to you for... that... agh..." Dark had a hard time talking. His power seemed to be draining from him.

Rouge said, "Yeah, I suppose it was. Now shut the hell up." He turned the sword and took it out of Dark's body. He forced the sword across Dark's neck, beheading the evil one."It's just been revoked!"

Thorn grunted, "He... err... didn't really set you up... for that line... ergh... bro. Now, can you... get me down?"

"Yeah, yeah. Hold on..." Rouge prepped himself, jumped, and grabbed the arrow, dislodging it a bit but causing a sharp jolt of pain in Thorn.

"ARRGH! God, just let me get it..." he pulled the arrow out himself, causing him to fall and collapse on the floor.

"So... I suppose that NOW it's safe to assume it's over." said Rouge.

"Dear God, I hope so!" The two chuckled and sat for a bit, exhausted. Rouge wrapped up Thorn's wounds with pieces of torn clothing, and the two eventually headed back to Skyloft, maybe to even stop at Subloft for a quick bite.

Spoiler:Combined stories - For convenience of the readers

"Dude, where is Dark?"

"I don't know, we were supposed to hangout today."

Aussie Legend and logcar were sitting outside of the knight's school, where they had been waiting for their friend, Dark Arcanine, for about an hour.

The group decided to go to the bazaar to search for Dark. When they got there, there were a few stalls open like there always were. There was a shady girl sitting in the corner by the pub, but otherwise the place wasn't getting many customers. The group decided to look at merchandise while they were there, why not?After logcar finished looking at some bombs on sale, he turned around to see a large guy behind him with a huge pompadour."Shit, Groose..." he murmered to himself.

"Haha! You're damn right!" He, Cawlin and Stritch, who were also behind Groose, all gave the same evil grin. Groose pushed logcar against the sales counter.There was a sudden bright flash, and Groose suddenly flew into the opposite wall, leaving a few cracks and a large impression.

The girls face lightened up quite a bit. "My name's Team Hydro Aura! Nice to meet you! This here is Lucario, my best friend. We've been through a lot together. Lucario, return!" She held out a red and white ball, and Lucario disappeared into it.

"Whoa! How does that work??" Asked Aussie.

"You know what, I really don't know..." THA replied, half laughing. "Oh, I heard you two were looking for Dark Arcanine. I can sense his aura at the shooting range, along with a fellow named ThornSnyder."

"Whoa, now how did you do THAT?!?" inquired Aussie.

"Lucario taught me. That's kinda why I helped you out, logcar, I could sense your helplessness against that bully."

logcar stuttered. "I-I-I wasn't helpless! I-"

"Shhh, I've got something to tell the headmaster of the knight's school. Where is he? I can't sense him for some reason..." THA asked.

"Uh, have you tried the school?" Aussie replied. "Seems like the most logical answer..."

"Err... nope. Without being able to sense him, I feel lost. To be honest, I'm not too familiar with this area at all, I've only been at Skyloft for a few hours."

"Then how do you know-" logcar got cut short again.

"Can you guys take me to the school? Please? It's important I see the headmaster."

"Yeah, I suppose. We want to go see Dark first, if that's okay."

THA sighed. "Fine... but please hurry."

The three headed off to the shooting range. As they approached the entrance, logcar spoke up.

"Guys, I think we're being followed..."

Sure enough, Groose was standing there with a large smirk on his face.

"You again? Well, we know how to handle you... Go, Lucario!"

Groose laughed. "Ha, you think I'd be stupid enough to take on that thing again?"He pulled his own red and white ball out of his pocket. "Go, Charmeleon! Attack!"

"Lucario, Aura Sphere, now!"

Charmeleon launched himself at Lucario, and Lucario launched a large energy ball at the fire lizard. Charmeleon took a full on hit, knocking him back behind Groose.

"Come on mother *bleep*er! Destroy that thing!"

Charmeleon stood up, a deep look of hatred on it's face.It began to glow.Charmeleon grew larger and grew wings. It let out a roar and a large jet of flame into the air.

"The *bleep* is going on?!" Shouted Groose before he ran off.

"Damn it! Charmeleon evolved into Charizard! Lucario, try to take it out with Aura Sphere again!" Shouted THA.

Lucario launched his attack at Charizard again, and the dragin thrust forward it's wings. The ball of energy exploded against the wings, and Charizard didn't even flinch.Charizard grinned.He flew up into the air and let out a large stream of fire onto THA and Lucario.

"God, no!" Screamed Aussie and logcar at the same time.

THA and Lucario were nowhere to be seen after that.logcar burst into tears."WHY?!?"

Charizard turned it's attention to the two bystanders and grinned again. It started to dive.

"... we're gonna die." Aussie muttered several times to himself.

Suddenly Charizard slowed, and slammed into the ground next to Aussie and logcar, unmoving with two arrows sticking out of it's thin neck.

"Nice shot!" Someone exclaimed, then a clapping noise.

____________________

"Haha, yes!" Dark Arcanine and ThornSnyder celebrated their takedown with a high five.

"Dude, you've really improved!" Dark said to Thorn.

"Uhh, guys... someone just died here..." mentioned Aussie.

"What? Who? And... dude, why are you wearing a dress?" asked Thorn, who was slightly confused.

"... that doesn't matter right now, what matters is that... that thing killed Team Hydro Aura!"

"Team Pyro who?"

Aussie facepalmed. He took the time to explain who THA was to Dark and Thorn.

"... so we should bring this up to headmaster Gaepora. Not only did Groose's... beast murder someone, but we've also got to tell him about how THA had a message for him!"

"Hey, we've also gotta prepare for the race tomorrow..." said logcar.

"Ah, shit... you're right. This is more important th-"

"Wait. How about Dark and I warn the headmaster, and you two can go prepare." Thorn suggested. He and Dark had graduated from the academy a few months earlier. "We'll handle it."

"I suppose..." mumbled logcar.

The group parted ways. As logcar and Aussie went to check on their Loftwings, logcar noticed something weird. He couldn't sense his Loftwing. Instead there was a colder presence... as if it no longer existed.

It was starting to get late. logcar began to fear the worst. He began shaking, almost crying.

"Hey man, are you ok?" Aussie looked concerned.

"Err... fine. Let's just get our Loftw-"

logcar stopped, and dropped to his knees, a horrified expression on his face.

In front of the two was a small sign with a crudely written message on it:

hey lozer, i killd yer bird.-Groosebad guyzbandits

"God, he really isn't very smart, is he? Sorry about your loss, logcar..."

logcar cried. A lot.

Meanwhile, Thorn and Dark had just finished talking to headmaster Gaepora. He took in the information slowly, and was quite shocked a student would act that way.

"I'll talk to him about this right away." He told them, sounding pretty concerned. "You two should warn the other knights, and keep a watch out for suspiscious activity."

"Will do." confirmed Dark. As they opened the door to leave, a stunned student sat on the other side. "Err... hello..."

"Ah, sfree36, up to your eavesdropping antics again? You and da koopa troopa have been doing that a lot lately." Gaepora smiled, "You know, you can get in a lot of trouble that way young man. What all did you hear?"

Trembling, sfree answered, "ummm... all of it... but I actually came to ask you if I can participate in the race tomorrow, sir... I've been practicing a lot with my Loftwing, I think we're ready this time!"

"sfree, I really don't want to have four of our knights risk their lives for another mishap like last year's... Are you sure you can ride your Loftwing?" sfree nodded eagerly. "Well then, I don't see why not!"

sfree jumped with excitement.

"Dark, Thorn; can you two please take this young man back to his room?"

"Yeah, sure" they both muttered.

"So, are you excited for tomorrow, bud?" Dark asked. Before sfree could respond, a small, black sphere with white eyes walked into the hall, making weird sounds.

*Bep bep beh boo beh bep boo bep*

Suddenly, a fuse on it's head spontaneously lit, and it it blew a large hole in the side of the academy, knocking the group off their feet.

A large figure rushed in, grabbed sfree, and took off.

"You'll never see this kid alive again! Bahahahaha" screamed Groose as he chucked sfree off the edge.

"NO!" screamed Dark and Thorn.

Thorn leaped off the edge and called his Loftwing, though he was aware of not being able to fly well at night.

He darted straight down, and looked for any sign of sfree. He looked and looked, but saw nothing.

"Groose, you *bleep*ing prick..."

____________________

"I'm gonna kill that bastard!" logcar was wallowing over the loss of his Loftwing. Everyone decided to get together and have a bit to drink at Aussie's. Except, logcar had a little more than a bit.

"Hey, chill bro. Let us all have a stab at him. The prick threw poor sfree off a cliff, and his damned dragon destroyed that poor girl." Thorn said.

"How is he still walking, anyway? You'd figure he'd be thrown off Skyloft himself by now..." Murmered Aussie.

There was a knock at the door; Dark got up and answered. It was Pwnige and da koopa troopa.

"Whatever, time to pwn some noobs!" Aussie and Pwnige immediately began playing.

"Pfft, Microsoft fanboys..." murmered koopa troopa.

"Whoa, forgot you were here dude. Sorry about what happened to your friend today... Dark and I tried to save him. Tell you what, we'll take you out to the range tomorrow, teach you a little on how to properly use a bow!" said Thorn, trying to cheer koopa up.

koopa didn't look too excited. "Erm... sure."

"Maybe we can take logcar as well, after all he just-" Dark looked over at logcar. "Ha, he must have drank himself to sleep." logcar was passed out over the table, half out of his seat. "I suppose I'll take him to the guest room, doesn't look like he's getting up anytime soon. I'll be right back."

"Eat RPG, bitches!" Screamed Aussie.

Suddenly, a brick busted through the window. On it, a note said:

Im otsyde

Thorn half laughed. "Really?! How hard is it to spell 'outside'? Christ..." He looked up and saw koopa, Aussie, and Pwnige had already gone outside. He followed, and he saw Groose sitting on his Loftwing. "Ha, catch me now, idiots!" He took off.

Thorn got a little pissed. "Damn, I left my bow at home! If I had... ohoho, Groose would sooo be dead." He ran and called his loftwing.

All noise seemed to drown out for a second, except for a low, fluctuating hum. Thorn stopped and looked around, and saw the others pointing at the sky.

Abe launched missiles at Groose, and they went everywhere, hitting buildings and the ground.

"Christ, he's going to destroy Skyloft!" yelled Pwnige.

Groose started flying in awkward patterns, it seemed his Loftwing had been hit by shrapnel. Groose tossed a bomb back at Abe, which missed and hit a building near the gang. The side of the bazaar blew, with large chunks of wall flying everywhere.

"EVERYONE INSIDE NOW!!" yelled Thorn.

As everyone sprinted inside, one member of the gang was still sitting outside, a dark look on his face. He pulled out a blue turtle shell with wings, cocked his arm back, and gave a good throw at Groose, knocking him off his bird.

In the blink of an eye, a large chunk of the bazaar replaced where young koopa stood.

"NO!" screamed Pwnige.

"What is going on here!?" asked Dark.

Thorn turned around. "Groose... Groose is what's happening."

____________________

"Is everyone alright?" asked Dark, worriedly.

"Let's do a head count" suggested Thorn.

"Well... we'll be playing XBox. The DLC I just bought should be done downloading. " said Pwnige. He and Aussie went right over to the gaming console, setting up the Kinect.

"... Whatever. So, we've got Dark, Aussie, Pwnige, me... logcar?"

"Out like a light" said Dark, half laughing.

"Ha, figures. He had quite a bit to drink. C'mon Dark, let's move this boulder away from the doorway..."

KA-DOOSHThe boulder in the way shattered.

"Wha... did you do that?!?" asked Thorn, completely shocked.

"No..."

They turned to see a guy with a fairly large, outlandish warhammer. "Thought you guys might want some help!"

"Rouge Elite! Dude that scared the shit out of us! Haha! Nice to see you man!"

"Nice to see you guys too, the search for the hero of legend took waaay longer than expected. We thought he'd be somewhere in the temple near where the goddess statue hit the surface world several years back, but he was nowhere to be seen." explained Rouge.

"Still can't believe that thing used to be up here... hard to believe I was born just weeks after all that went down!Anyway, did you guys see Zelda either?"

"No. We did find a bracelet that looked like the ones Zelda wore, but it seemed to have aged a bit. Oh, and we did find a kid down there... poor kid seemed to have fallen from Skyloft. We didn't see him come down or we would've saved him."

Thorn's face went pale. "sfree..."

"Is that who that was? Damn, he was so little when we headed out..."

"Yeah, Groose Jr. threw the kid off Skyloft. He's been wrecking havoc up here... as you can see."

"Groose's kid did this? Groose seems like such a good character. He even took it upon himself to protect that temple down on the surface. Nothing even down there... When Emberguard, another member of our group, tried to enter the back chamber, he about threw her across the room. Said that room was only to be accessed by a true hero and children of Hylia. He takes it pretty seriously."

"Wow. You know, I'd really like to see the surface sometime."

"Ha, maybe I'll take you all down there next time, seeing as you've seemed to graduate from the Academy. Knight's garments look good on you guys!Anyway, our group is going to be hanging out at Subloft after we cleanup Skyloft, why don't you come with us? You can explain everything on the way!"

"Sounds good!"

Thorn and Dark headed off with Thorn, leaving logcar in bed and Aussie and Pwnige playing XBox. The two seemed to be dancing in front of the television.

-----

Hours passed, and Dark and Thorn met up with Rouge and his group... which only had two more people, Emberguard and an elderly man. Emberguard held what looked like a smaller version of Groose's monster in her lap.The old guy sat and polished his small submachine gun carefully. He seemed to have some attachment to it.

The group shared stories over a few subs. The creature Ember was holding was what she called a Charmander, and she said she had found it while the group explored a large volcano called Death Mountain. There were apparently others on the surface, and Ember had dubbed them as "Pocket Monsters."

The older guy was apparently around when Skyloft was almost destroyed, and the Goddess Statue fell onto the surface. He also explained that he once knew the hero of legend and young Zelda.

When they were done, the group decided to head to the surface world after the race the next day/afternoon (no one had any idea what time it was, but it was fairly late). They headed back to Aussie's place for some rest/to fill them in on the plan.

Once there, they noticed Aussie outside, sitting against the front door, a solemn expression on his face. Curious, Thorn asked, "What's up?"

Aussie looked up slowly, then dropped his head back down. "Pwnige is... dead."

The three awake gave Pwnige a small and short burial. Aussie placed the Kinect and XBox inside the burial. "He would've wanted it..." he explained. "Who knows, maybe he'll carry it with him beyond the grave..."

Everyone regrouped at the bazaar. None of the merchants seemed to have any idea that Skyloft was nearly blown apart only hours before.

After a bit of discussion and introducing Aussie to Rouge's group, everyone went their own ways to prepare for the ceremony that took place later in the day. Aussie didn't really want to go home, but figured he needed some rest. Not to mention logcar was probably still passed out in the guest bed.

After a bit of cleaning up, Aussie set an alarm and hopped in bed. Before he fell asleep, he heard logcar murmuring in his sleep:

"Who's there...?"

"Erm... it's me, Aussie Legend..."

"Am... dreaming...?"

"Yeah, probably."

And with that, Aussie fell asleep.

-----

"Aussie! Aussie! Come on, dude! The race starts in 45 minutes!"

Aussie jolted awake. "Shiiiiit, overslept... I'm on my way out!"

"My bird... dead... Groose..." murmured logcar.

Aussie looked at him for a second. "Damn, you must not be sleeping well... Hey guys! Let's bring logcar with us before Groose kills him in his sleep." he shouted to the others. The old guy came in and threw logcar over his shoulder.

"Let's go," he said.

The group headed out to the area that the competition was supposed to start, but no one was there. What was there were giant holes in the ground.

"I take it the competition won't take place today," said Ember.

"Nah, they'll force everyone to walk across the crumbling dirt." The group turned around to see Abe walking toward them. "Of course it's not today, sheesh."

"Yeah, because of you! God dammit, you know all that debris could've- well, did kill someone." Thorn said, angrily.

"I was just trying to give Groose what he deserved. I saw what he did to that girl and felt he deserved it."

"But poor Koopa didn't! You killed a young boy!"

"Well, technically the 'debris' must've killed him, 'cause I was aiming at Groose the entire time.I don't think I got him though, sadly. I did see a small object fly at his loftwing and explode though. Pretty sure he survived, but his bird looked pretty hurt."

"Anyway, guys," Dark broke in, "We should talk to the headmaster. Need to see what day the ceremony's been moved to."

So the group made their way to the headmaster's office. He explained that the ceremony would be delayed untile the area was patched up. Let down, the group headed back to the bazaar.

"So, what now?" asked Dark.

Rouge answered, "Well... we can take you guys to the surface if you guys want!"

"Yeah!""Cool!"

"Alright, but first I want to check out that thunderhead. I heard the hero used to visit there, so naturally it draws me in."

"Yeah, we can do that." said Thorn.

"Char!" exclaimed Ember's Charmander.

"You'll be fine!" Ember assured the lizard. "He doesn't like high winds very much, messes with the fire on its tail, which is connected to its life force." she explained to the group.

"Wow, that thing is actually pretty cool!" Dark told Ember.

Everyone headed out to climb onto a loftwing, and Abe went to get his heli. Rouge and Ember rode the same loftwing, as well as the old man and logcar.

The old guy pulled out some headphones, which seemed to instantly play music as they entered his ears. The music seemed fairly loud too, since these words were played loud and clear:

Oh my GodOh my God!If only he knew...If only he knew...!If only he knew about the worldWithout the bullshit and the lies...We could've saved him!They could've saved me!

"Damn, geezer's got a taste for heavy music" Aussie commented.

They all took off towards the thunder head. There seemed to be a slight opening around the front, so Rouge, Ember, and geezer got closer to examine it. They came back looking disappointed. "The entrance isn't large enough for any of us to fit through. Strange though, since there's a large section of cloud swirling around it, different from the ones around it..." explained Rouge.

Then, a twister seemed to shoot up out of nowhere. Everyone evaded it using maneuvers learned at the academy.

"Wow, school actually did teach us something!" said Dark, laughing.

Abe finally caught up with his heli while everyone recovered, the hum of the blades making it hard to hear anything. The wind also picked up a lot more. Charmander's tail flame was very small, and Ember tried to protect it.Charmander went unconscious, sliding out from between Ember and Rouge and off the loftwing.

"NO!" shouted Ember. She dove off of Rouge's loftwing in an attempt to catch him. Both Rouge and Thorn directed their loftwings down to follow her, but both drew back as they flew too close together.

The whole group watched as Ember grabbed Charmander and disappeared through the layer of clouds over the surface.

Blaring in the geezer's ear while everyone stared at the spot the two bodies fell through:

"Who's there?" Demanded logcar. He looked around. It was very cloudy, not a thing in sight."... where am I?"logcar thought hard for a moment. Last thing he remembered was drowning his sorrows in alcohol."Am I dreaming?!" He asked.

Somewhat... I have an important task for you...

"Whadda you mean somewhat? And a task? I'm confused..."

You need to warn the people of Skyloft... You are all in grave danger. My last prophet was killed by the one named Groose...

Please! This is important... I belong to another world... a world inhabited by creatures the prophet and a few others carry. It seems that our worlds are connected... and if your world disappears, so does ours... along with many others...

"What?! This is crazy! I definitely had waaay too much to drink..."

Listen! If you do not believe me now, I have sent you a gift... In your dorm. It will be under your bed, and will help you win that race...

"But... my bird is dead. Groose killed it."

I know... It has been reincarnated in another realm, also linked to your world...

"Damn... but, I've gotta ask... why me?"

The others do not have the potential I seek... and you were the first to fall asleep...

"Right..."

You still doubt me... I see. I suppose I can only encourage you from here. I believe it is time for you to return to your world...

"Wait! Who are you?"

The people of my world call me... Arceus...

-----

logcar jolted awake as the group landed on mainland Skyloft. He instantly hopped off of the old guy, not paying attention to the playful jests of others. He had something he wanted to do, he needed to search under his bed for that gift the being promised him.

He reached his dorm and dropped to the floor to look under his bed. Nothing new was under there. Disappointed, logcar sat himself on the bed. Footsteps were heard down the hallway as a bright light shone from underneath the bed. logcar slowly looked under the bed again to see a red and white orb, similar to the one Team Hydro Aura had used, lying under his bed. As he grabbed it, Thorn, Dark, and Aussie burst into the room.

"What are you doing dude?" asked Aussie.

logcar examined the orb. "I need to talk to the headmaster."

The four made their way to the Gaepora's office, where logcar explained the link between the worlds.

"I see..." said the headmaster. "Well, for the time being we're going to have to keep the secret between us. I don't want the people of Skyloft panicking over something that may have been just a dream. I know that it's hard to deny it wasn't," he added, looking at logcar, "but I've seen weirder coincidences before.Now, I'm sure you guys have seen that the area used for the ceremony has been cleaned up. We're holding the ceremony in a few hours! Why don't you guys rest up..."

So the group did, it seemed necessary seeing as most of the gang hadn't slept much.

logcar decided to see what was in the small orb. He noticed a small inscription on the back:

Model: PokéballProduced by Silph Co.Species caught:Pidgeot

What's a Pidgeot? he wondered. He poked the small circle protruding from the front and a bright light flashed. After the light faded, a large bird with what seemed like long flowing hair appeared in front of him.logcar's jaw dropped.The Pidgeot lowered itself down, and made a gesture towrds its back. logcar slowly hopped on. As soon as he settled, Pidgeot instantly took off, flying faster than logcar has ever seen.

He continued to fly with his new friend until the start of the flight ceremony. logcar knew he was going to win.

At the start of the race, there were only a few participants: logcar, Aussie, Cawlin, Stritch, and Groose. A date with the lovely Kukiel was the prize for winning the race. That didn't really matter to any of the participants, save Aussie, as each had other reasons to win.

"GO!" shouted Gaepora.

Four of the contestants ran and called their loftwings, chasing the yellow loftwing for the ceremonial statuette. logcar slowly pulled out the Pokéball and called for Pidgeot. He climbed on at his own pace, and Pidgeot took off.

The pair weren't in the air two minutes and they had flashed past the competition, grabbing the statuette with ease. Aussie nearly fell off of his loftwing from the wind generated by the speed.

logcar and his Pidgeot returned to the start area. Everyone had an expression of awe. Thorn slowly started clapping, which erupted into applause from everyone.

"Remarkable!" shouted the headmaster.

logcar grinned. "I knew I would beat him!" He turned around to the other racers. "I beat that red-headed motherfu-"

BANG!

There was a gunshot. logcar fell to the ground, clenching his stomach.Everyone looked at where the gunshot had come from. Groose was holding a small revolver, and still had it pointed at logcar.

TATATAT

The weapon disappeared from Groose's hand, and a few of his fingers looked broken.

The old guy spoke, his submachine gun in his hands. "Get the hell out of here."

Groose jumped and ran, Cawlin and Stritch behind him.

"Somebody, get a doctor!" yelled Thorn.Rouge ran up to the medical wing of the academy to fetch the nurse.

The crowd watched quietly as logcar slowly bled out.

"No... this can't be happening..." whispered a teary eyed Aussie.

"Aussie... make sure... you... kill..." logcar went limp, and Aussie began to cry loudly.

"Groose... you'll pay for this, you son of a bitch."

____________________

The remaining members of the group watched quietly as their friend was carried off.

"How is Groose still standing...?" asked Aussie, quietly. "Seriously... so many deaths because of him..."

"I dunno..." murmered Dark.

The old man broke the tension. "Surface world, now. It'll get your mind off of Groose, trust me."

"Boy, you're so full of joy, aren'tcha?" Abe said.

Geezer turned and glared at Abe for a sec. "You still have no idea how life works, do you? Fate is cruel, I'll just leave it at that." He walked over to his loftwing. "Rouge, lead them down. I'll be waiting below." He took off.

Abe looked at where the old guy had left for a sec. "Well... see you guys down there. I'm off to my HAVOC." He walked off.

The group was a bit stunned. "... that was a bit harsh of him to say to the kid. What's his problem, anyway?" Thorn asked Rouge.

"Dunno. He doesn't like to talk about his past. Hell, I've traveled with him for over a year and I still don't know his name."

"Hm. Seems like a good guy, but he can be a douche."

"Yeah... anyway, we should get going. Geezer can get pretty impatient." The group all climbed on their separate loftwings, took off, and followed Rouge through the clouds.

As the group broke through the clouds, their jaws dropped as they took in the green landscape.

"This area is called Faron Woods!" shouted Rouge over the roar of wind. "This place is as green as it gets down here! Beautiful!"

The group landed in a small clearing. Dark asked, "That statue over there... is that the Goddess Statue? The one that fell from Skyloft?"

"Why, yes it is, actually! The large building beside it is also the temple the Groose Sr. looks after!" answered Rouge, enthusiasticly.

They walked over to the old guy. He was sitting in a camplike area, staring at a group of large mushrooms.

"Hey," Rouge started, "where should we take these guys fi-"

Dark cut him off. "Hold on, Rouge. I'm curious about the old guy. Please, at least tell us your name..."

Geezer took a deep breath. "My name... is ump45master. I know you guys have been wanting to know about me since I was brought back to Skyloft... especially you, Rouge, for the longest time... tell you what. I'll tell you my whole backround story..."Each of the group sat down in the closest seat and listened to ump45.The old guy sighed. "You know, I knew a few of your fathers. Fun men, I'd say. I knew yours," he pointed at Dark, "yours, and yours." He continued around the circle, pointing at Rouge and Thorn. "I heard talk of koopa's son as well. Good guy, always had a weird obsession with turtles though..." ump chuckled to himself. He didn't seem to be telling his story to the group anymore, but more like taking a personal trip down memory lane. A trip that hadn't been taken in a long, long time. "You know, it really hurt to see young Pwnige collapsed like that. I knew almost instantly who he was, too..." He began tearing up a bit. "Then log's son... that was a horrible way to go. That son of Groose's is really lucky he wasn't gutted right then and there." A tear rolled down his cheek. "You're fathers... they were my friends..."

The group sat in silence for a long moment. The air was very heavy.

"... I just wish I could've protected them all. There was one amongst us that... wasn't one of us, as I came to find out eventually. I had my suspiscions, but I kept them to myself."

ump took off his shirt, revealing a tattoo on his chest. It was of a sword and shield, the word 'Defender' written underneath it. "I ate some mushrooms, just like those ones over there..." He pointed at the mushrooms he was staring at earlier. "They put me in a spasm, and eventually the toxins shut down all body movement. Everyone thought I was dead... oh, how badly I wanted to show them I wasn't... they tried to revive me, and since I didn't move they thought I had died..." There were streams coming down the old guy's face.

"When I had full control again, I returned to Skyloft, only to find out everyone had died to the hands of an evil power... the same evil power log's son seemed to be describing to the headmaster. We need to find this power, before it destroys all worlds. However, I won't push this task onto you. I've made it my personal goal to do so."

He sat and looked at the group for a long time. A smile slowly grew upon his face, "So, you were saying, Rouge?"

It was a moment before Rouge spoke. "Sh-should we take them on a t-tour of the Skyview T-Temple?"

"Ah, the temple, yes. Let's go."

The group made their way across Faron Woods and into the temple. "Ah, this place is so quiet. I love it!" said Aussie.

"Yes, yes it is..." said ump, smiling.

The group headed deeper into the temple.

"What are those things on the wall? They look like closed eyes..." asked Thorn.

"Well... that's because they are!" answered Rouge. "Apparently they were some sort of security devices, but you could easily confuse them by moving a sharp point in a circular motion. Cool thing to watch, actually."

As they walked into the next room, ump held his arm out across the group, signaling for them to stop.

"Hey, what's the bi-"

"Shhh!" Abe's sentence was cut off. A very faint... pattering noise could be heard.

"Skulltulas..." ump whispered. He took out his submachine gun, looking at any possible entrance to the room. Dark and Thorn both drew their bows, doing the same. Rouge took out what looked like a small handle. A small hand jerk turned it into an alien weapon that looked very sharp, and was very bright in color.

"I never go anywhere without my energy sword!" he said.

Abe grabbed an AS50 sniper rifle and climbed into the highest spot he could find.

... and Aussie cowered into a corner, unarmed.

TATATATATATATATATATAT

ump was the first to fire. Skulltulas seemed to pour in from everywhere: doors to other rooms, holes in the ceiling, and even gaps in the floor.

"OH MY GOD I *bleep*ING HATE SPIDERS" Aussie screamed.

Dark and Thorn released and drew arrows quickly, with their backs against one another.

"KOOOM"

Abe fired one shot after another, causing the large spiders to explode in one shot. A spider leaped at Abe, and it was quickly taken out by two arrows to its underside. Dark and Thorn looked at each other for a brief moment, smiling.

Rouge sprinted through the spiders, virtually untouched, slashing through each of them with his sword.

ump disabled a lot of the skulltulas, with his gun doing enough damage to cripple each spider.

Within almost no time, the swarm had slowed and eventually stopped.

Rouge went to take out the last one, which was frantically scurrying towards the group with its two working legs, but he was beat to it by a shot to its head from Abe.

Rouge looked around the room. "Hey, where'd Aussie go?"

The rest of the group looked around. Aussie had disappeared.

"Ha, he probably ran from all the spiders!" exclaimed Abe. "What a pansy!"

Laughing, the group backtracked into the next room. The laughter was short lived, however, as they found Aussie Legend. He was wrapped up in webbing, with a larger-than-average skulltula sinking its teeth into his body.

The five remaining men walked out of the temple quietly, making their way towards what ump and Rouge called "The Goddess Temple." Faron Woods had a few nasty creatures here and there, but the group easily moved through them.

Sitting outside the temple was an old man with a gray pompadour. His eyes were shut and his arms were crossed.

"Groose...!" Thorn half whispered. "Wow, the two really look alike!"

Groose stood up, opening his eyes. "What business do you have here?"

Rouge answered, "We came here to visit the temple, we want to show these guys what the inside looks like."

"No chance. There has been a dark power lurking the world lately, I'm not letting anyone in."

"What? That's gay..." complained Abe.

"Hmph. I was told that one hiding amongst a group of five would be desparate to get in here. Seeing as you're the only group with five people around here, I suggest you leave."

"What if-" Abe started.

"Forget it punks, I know you're the only ones down here. I see everything that enters these woods, and everything that leaves. Now scram."

"Gaaay" whined Abe.

"What now?" asked Dark.

ump pointed over to a large volcano, far off in the distance. "How about Death Mountain? However, we can't fly there with our loftwings, it's too risky to fly them in the heat and high winds the volcano creates..."

"How about my HAVOC?" suggested Abe. "We can all probably cram in there."

"... I've been meaning to ask you, how do you afford all these things?" asked Thorn, almost demanding an answer.

"My dad's rich. Duh. Come on, let's go!"

So, they all crowded into the attack helicopter and took off.

From the pilot seat, Abe radio'd, "So guys, you know one of us is... well, evil? It got me thinking... what if I just... did this." Abe reached over and pusheda small, brown button. "Haha... hahahaha... HAHAHAHAHA!"

The inside of the chopper flashed red. A voice could be heard, announcing:

MI-28 HAVOC SELF-DESTRUCTING IN:10

"Holy Christ it must be Abe!" shouted ump.

9

"Should've known after you guys told us what he did to Skyloft!" yelled Rouge.

8

"HAHAHA! CHOCOLATE BUTTONS!"

7

"What do we do?!" yelled Dark.

6

5

"Quick! Grab ahold of each other!" Everyone followed ump's command.

4

"Take this parachute, and hold on tight!"

3

ump pulled aside the main door of the heli.

2

"You all better survive this fall!"With that, ump shoved the other three out.

1

The HAVOC exploded, shrapnel flying everywhere.

"UMP!" screamed Rouge.

Dark pulled the string on the backpack, and the small parachute flew out. It was enough to slow their fall, but it didn't slow them enough. The trio were still falling towards the ground.

"Whistle for your birds!" shouted Thorn. So the three did. Rouge's came first, then Thorn's, then Dark's.

As they reached the ground, what happened had finally hit them.

Dark spoke up. "So... it was Abe the whole time... ypu know, there was always something weird about him..."

Thorn nodded in agreement.

Rouge sat still for a minute. "I still can't believe that old bastard's gone..."

"Nah, not too much into shooting arrows, unlike you two." Rouge smiled. "Super Nintendo at my old place? Haven't played in ages..."

The other two agreed, and they made their way back to the floating island.

____________________

"Dammit, I always get stuck on 5-2!" Rouge exclaimed. He, Dark, and Thorn were all hanging out in his apartment.

"Haha, dude you suck at this game!" laughed Dark.

"Thorn, you take the controller. I'm done for a minute. Mario Bros. pisses me off every time I play it."

"Alright man, calm down, it's just a game!" chuckled Thorn.

"I know, I know. I can just never pass that level, it's aggravating!"

Rouge went in the other room and turned on the tv.

"Hey Rouge, not to sound like a mooch or anything, but can do you have any food?" asked Thorn.

Rouge thought a moment. "Yeah! I've got some leftovers in the fridge from the past few days, wanna help me get rid of some? Haha"

"Uhh, whatcha got?"

"Hold on." Rouge walked in the kitchen and opened the fridge. "Let's see... some leftover pizza and some lasagna."

"Dude, I miss your lasagna! Heat that shizz up!"

Laughing, Rouge pulled out the lasagna, scooped it into a bowl, and tossed it into the microwave.

He walked into the other room to wait for the timer go off, and suddenly he was struck in the back of the head, falling to the floor.

He heard a voice, "Dude what're you do-"

clunk

He heard another body hit the floor, and his consciousness faded away.

-----

Rouge woke up in a daze, unaware that smoke filled the room. He sat up and felt the back of his head, the whole thing throbbing. He then noticed that he was sweating profusely and that the air was very polluted, making it hard to breathe.

"The hell is going... shit! FIRE!" He started crawling toward the door. His trip was cut short by his ceiling fan falling onto his legs, causing him to cry out in pain.

A hand suddenly shot through the smoke, appearing in front of his face. "Give me your hand!" said a voice. Rouge grabbed it, and he was slowly pulled out of the danger.

____________________

"Thank you... so... much...!" panted Rouge. He looked up to see ThornSnyder's worried face. Thorn had pulled him out of the fire, leading him outside.

"It wasn't Abe!" he exclaimed. "Dark is the evil one!"

A laughter came from nowhere. "You're damn right I was!"

A cold chill shot down both of their backs.

"Abe was insane enough to try and take me down with him. Lucky for me, ump45master helped me escape... not that I really needed it!"

Rouge rolled over on his back. "You bastard! So you've been behind all the murders?!"

"Hehehe... not exactly. Groose Jr. doesn't take much convincing, he said he'd kill a few of you for a few Rupees! I was going to threaten him with his life, but hell, that made my job easier!"

"What do you mean, 'your job?'" inquired Thorn.

"Ha, I guess I could fill you in, can't I? You see," Dark started, "As children of the chosen heroes, who were to stop the evil power from before, you inherited their legacy!" Dark appeared in front of the two in a cloud of black smoke. "I needed you out of the way so I could get my hands on the sacred power, the Triforce. I didn't want any complications along the way, so I decided to kill you all early." Dark smirked. "Some of your friends just happened to get in the way."

"You bastard!" yelled Rouge.

"Is that all you can say? Hahahaha! I'd rather hear something else, if you don't mind." Dark drew a fairly large sword and gave a big grin.

"Wanna hear this?" Thorn drew his bow and shot an arrow at Dark, who disappeared in an instant. "RUN!"

Thorn helped Rouge up, pulling Rouge's arm over his shoulders. He began to run through town, dodging the ocassional arrow or slash Dark threw at him. One arrow nicked Thorn's sleeve, ripping it off his shirt. Where the sleeve once was showed a tattoo that looked very similar to ump's, except it also branded a III on the shield. The word "Defender" had not yet faded like ump's.

The two reached the edge of Skyloft and jumped, calling for their loftwings. The two separated in the air as they landed on their separate loftwings.

"We need to talk to Groose! He probably knows what to do!" yelled Rouge over the roar of wind in his ears.

Still dodging arrows, the two headed down to the surface world. They landed in Faron Woods, near the temple. Groose still sat in the same spot outside the temple.

"The evil one was Dark Arcanine! What do we d- SHIT!" An arrow flew over Thorn's shoulder, nearly hitting both his and Groose's heads.

"Quick, inside! The blade of evil's bane is inside!"

"What?!" exclaimed Rouge as they all ran inside.

Groose closed and barred the door. "The Master Sword, the only thing that can seal away this evil power! The hero of legend, Link, used it to fight off the last evil!"

"Well shit, I have absolutely no swordsman training..." admitted Thorn. "Here Rouge, you take it..."

Rouge nodded and walked up to the sword. He gripped the sword tightly and pulled up... but the sword didn't budge.

"*bleep*"

"Out of the way, let me try." Thorn grabbed the sword, and a small golden triangle glowed on his hand. He pulled the Master Sword out of the ground with no problems. He turned to Rouge. "Here, now take it."

The door burst open and Dark flew in. He shot an arrow into Thorn's knee, causing him to buckle to the ground. He chuckled, "No more adventuring for you!"

Rouge stood up and ran at Dark. The Master Sword was much heavier than his Energy Sword. He tried to jump and slash at Dark, but didn't even reach halfway.

Dark smiled and tackled him up against the wall. "Now, be good and stay right here, I'll be back for you later."

He let go of Rouge and headed up into the air. "You know, I thought you guys really made my job easy. Or at least, Rouge did." Rouge gave a weird look. Dark saw this and sneered, "You left a fork in the microwave when you heated up that lasagna, dumbass! I saw the microwave had caught fire and thought I'd just knock you guys out right there so you'd burn. Didn't realize that apartment would take so damn long to burn..."

Dark turned and looked at Groose. "Ah yes, I remember you. You helped that boy in green by shooting my imperfect form with those bombs! Ha, I think it's time for some payback!"

Dark lifted up Groose by the neck. He seemed to stare at him a moment, then whispered something in his ear. He tossed the old man like a ragdoll across the room and into a wall. Groose hit the ground and didn't move again.

An arrow suddenly shot into Dark's upper back. He cried out, then turned around to see Thorn on one knee with his bow out. Thorn shot another arrow, but Dark caught it in front of his face, snapped it in half, and tossed it aside. He slowly floated down towards Thorn, the arrow still sticking out of his back.

"Aww, even in the darkest times you try to be a hero. That's admirable, I will admit. However..." he pulled the arrow out of his back, "this was pretty annoying. I'm going to go ahead and give," he drove the arrow through Thorn's arm, pinning him to the wall, "back to you. Doesn't that just feel great? I know I liked it when you did it."

He backed up a bit. Thorn was screaming in agony as Dark let go of him, suspending him by the arm. "You look quite nice hanging there, you know. Seems to be a pretty sturdy arrow as well, you always had a knack for crafting some nice arrows."

"Now, where was I-"

Dark was stopped short by a sword being thrust through his chest. He grunted and fell to his knees.

"Aha, that was... eurgh... sneaky, Rouge. Props to you for... that... agh..." Dark had a hard time talking. His power seemed to be draining from him.

Rouge said, "Yeah, I suppose it was. Now shut the hell up." He turned the sword and took it out of Dark's body. He forced the sword across Dark's neck, beheading the evil one."It's just been revoked!"

Thorn grunted, "He... err... didn't really set you up... for that line... ergh... bro. Now, can you... get me down?"

"Yeah, yeah. Hold on..." Rouge prepped himself, jumped, and grabbed the arrow, dislodging it a bit but causing a sharp jolt of pain in Thorn.

"ARRGH! God, just let me get it..." he pulled the arrow out himself, causing him to fall and collapse on the floor.

"So... I suppose that NOW it's safe to assume it's over." said Rouge.

"Dear God, I hope so!" The two chuckled and sat for a bit, exhausted. Rouge wrapped up Thorn's wounds with pieces of torn clothing, and the two eventually headed back to Skyloft, maybe to even stop at Subloft for a quick bite.

If I can think of more stuff to put here, I will. Congrats again to the traders!

If I were living in America I'd be outside the closest Gamestop waiting to pick up Darksiders 2

If today was September 18th, I'd be skipping school to get my copy of Borderlands II /Somewhat relevant.I'm guessing by the quote that Darksiders is a good game. I haven't heard a single word about after it's release. Looked cool though.

-------------------I write stories sometimes. Check them out over here.

If today was September 18th, I'd be skipping school to get my copy of Borderlands II

OHMAGERD BORDERLANDS 2 *hugs*

Darksiders (original) was good, not great. A lot of work has been put in and litterally everything has been improved for the sequel. Ironically it does play VERY similar to a Zelda game with a bit better combat (but obviously not having that 'zelda' magic if I may put it so homosexually)